Linebacker DeMeco Ryans didn’t practice Thursday, and his status for New Orleans is unclear. Gary Kubiak said Ryans’ bruised elbow was swollen Wednesday, and the team is being cautious in his recovery.

Cornerback Johnathan Joseph participated in individual drills but not team periods. Kubiak placed the odds of Joseph, who also missed the preseason opener, playing at 50-50.

There was some good news on the running back front. Arian Foster seems like a go for Saturday, and second-year running back Ben Tate returned to practice.

Saints bring pressure

Last week, the Saints sacked San Francisco’s quarterbacks six times. Normally, defensive coordinators don’t call too many blitzes during the preseason, but Gregg Williams went all out – and Kubiak is expecting more of the same Saturday.

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“Gregg’s aggressive,” Kubiak said. “They’re a very fast offensive football team, and they’re a very aggressive defensive football team, a lot of pressure. I think he’s one of the best. He’s been doing it for a long time, and I’ve got a lot of respect for him. You better be on your toes all the time when you play him.”

Williams employs a 4-3 scheme that is regarded as one of the soundest in the league.

“That’s one thing they do a lot. They’ll bring people from everywhere,” tight end Owen Daniels said. “They’ll bring corners, safeties, backers, obviously. You’ve just gotta be on your toes and have your eyes open, and hopefully we can gash them when they do that. It’s basically a challenge if we can’t get the ball out or if we can’t be on our assignments, so if we are, that’ll get them off us pretty quick.”

Transition takes time

Leave it to DeMeco Ryans, the defense’s heart and soul, to provide perspective on Mario Williams and the linebacking crew.

Some fans may have expected Williams to dominate immediately in his transition to linebacker in Wade Phillips’ 3-4. That didn’t happen and isn’t going to be the case, Ryans said, without mentioning Williams specifically.

“The potential’s there, but we all know that we have to put the work in and we have to go out there and perform on Sundays,” Ryans said. “That’s what counts no matter what the expectations are from other people. We have high expectations for ourselves. We know we have to excel in this defense.

“I know we definitely have the potential to be a great bunch of linebackers, but I said we have to play together day-in and day-out and let the work speak for itself.”

He’ll take it

Maybe you saw the dropped pass by the Jets near the end of Monday’s game and rolled your eyes, or maybe you even giggled.

Texans coach Gary Kubiak did neither. This, in some small way, was karma.

“That was kind of nice to see happen,” Kubiak said. “What was good is we talk about finishing games, and last week, preseason or no preseason, offensively we finished it with a touchdown, defensively we finished it with a stop. That’s this league. Hopefully you get a couple breaks along the way, and we did get one there in the fourth quarter.”

Quin looking good

Much news has been of Mario Williams’ shift to linebacker and even linebacker Brian Cushing’s being moved inside. And the additions of Johnathan Joseph, Danieal Manning and rookie J.J. Watt might have overshadowed this development, but the shift of Glover Quin — probably the Texans’ most consistent cornerback last year — to safety has been effortless, coach Gary Kubiak said.

“It’s a natural position for him,” Kubiak said. “I think his career’s got a chance of taking off. That’s where he really belongs.”

HE SAID IT

"I want to see (Zac) Pauga play a little bit at fullback too... I want